There Still Are Affordable Homes Out There

People say it’s expensive to buy a home in Seattle. For many that is the case. But there still are affordable homes out there. Case in point, this Saturday (3/22) I’ll be holding open a rambler in Wedgwood that’s listed for $349,000.

The details – 3 bedrooms, 1 bath, 1,030 sq. ft, and a 6,658 lot. With that much land, you have a fabulous place for kids playing outside or to enlarge the home at a later time. And don’t let me forget, it’s got a 2-car garage with a lot of storage space. Currently the schools for this address are Wedgwood Elementary, Eckstein Middle, and Nathan Hale high, all high demand schools (but do recognize that school boundaries may change year to year).

Now you say, $349,000, is that really affordable. Let’s look at some numbers:

Down Payment (20%) = $69,800

4.5% 30 year loan = monthly payment of $1419 (you will need to add property taxes and homeowners insurance to that number for a monthly payment most likely less than $1,800)

Don’t have 20% down, there are other options. You’ll need to add mortgage insurance in as well. And if you have a combined household income of less than $97,000 with a credit score of at least 620, there are loan options that include down payment assistance of up to 4% of the loan (about $14,000) or there’s even a program with the City of Seattle that will provide down payment assistance up to $45,000.

On this home, offers will be looked at early next week (and I do expect that there will be multiple offers), so contact me ASAP if you’d like a private showing or more information on mortgages. Or please stop by on Saturday and let me know you learned about the open house from my blog.